Force of Nature
by Demon-Juna
Summary: I suck at summaries, so to put it lightly this is just a Lan/Nynaeve thing.
1. Chapter 1

Nynaeve sat beside herself in the soft shadow of a birch tree, her hands cupped underneath the leather-bound book she was reading. Her dark braid was slung down her back, rather than over her shoulder, and she found herself completely at peace with herself. She trailed her nail down the page with a happy glint in h er eyes, and gave a soft chuckle.

"_Maliki approached the rogue with such vigor, such strength, that the rogue coward away when he reached out to help the lonesome creature. He sighed softly, wondering why everyone thought that he would hurt them. As if they were not wary of him..." _She trailed off from reading, and looked up at the bright sky. Thoughts of her crush played around in her mind. No, she didn't have time for petty crushes! Besides, he had never returned her feelings anyway...

"What did I do wrong?" She murmured, thinking of Jornic. Her dark brown eyes fluttered close as she shut the book with a snap and got up. It was time for her to go home anyways. She disappeared back into the woods, following her carefully set up path and covering her tracks . As she found herself back in her little town , she noticed the electric charge in the air. A storm was coming.

"But the sky is so blue..." She murmured . "I probably just need a rest" She said softly, heading towards the inn. She nowadays preferred the inn over her own house mostly because too many people decided that night-time was the best time to get into stupid trouble, and injured them selves with a nick of a 'huge scratch !' She hated to admit it to herself, but her town grew weak.

But there was hope for her; Rand and his father made an excellent team for fighting. Even if Perrin was a blacksmith, he could still wield an Ax like any hunter. And Mat... well, he had plenty of tricks up his sleeve. Even she could handle a good fight with fists, or even a knife ... but Egwene... She didn't like hurting bugs, much less a humanoid of any sort.

As her mind wandered, so did her eyes. They landed on the visiting Thom Merrilin, who was playing his heavenly harp and giving soft verses of a wonderfully in -tuned song. She sat at a local table , hood pulled over her head as she listened , and noticing a few strangers near by . Just past the strangers heads, she could see the sun setting, and the glimmer of the first few stars making t heir appearance.

She went back to observing the strangers . Her fingers played with the hem of her sleeve, and she noticed a few people had gotten up to dance; the lady stranger being one of them. She watched the people in the inn dance for a while before getting up to join them. Although not many knew of her likeness for the smooth steps of dance, she had always enjoyed it. The first man she met up to was an upside-down triangular faced man with pretty green eyes and soft stubble dotting his chin and cheeks.

He surprisingly kept up to the beat with her, though she didn't really know the song he helped her out and she was soon twirled into the arms of another man. This one had dirty blonde hair and was easily old enough to be her grandfather, though she enjoyed dancing with him. They stepped and twisted and turned until it was the time to pick a new partner.

Her mind suddenly urged her to look over to where the strangers had been, and she obliged, surprised to find the man stranger approaching her. Her heart skipped once when his icy blue eyes met hers , and he bowed softly.

"Will you dance with me?" He murmured. A t that moment, Thom decided to play the most corny song he possibly could have; ' What he said to me'.

She nodded, taking the strangers outstretched hand and beginning to dance to the tempo of the music.

_"I'll dance with a girl with eyes of brown,_

_or a girl with eyes of green..."_

Step, step, pause, twirl, step.

_"... I'll dance with a girl with any color eyes,_

_though yours are the prettiest I've seen !"_

Step, swing, spin, step, step, pause.

_"I'll kiss a girl with hair of black,_

_or a girl with hair of gold..."_

Step, pause, swing, step.

_"I'll kiss a girl with any color hair,_

_but it's you I want to hold"_

Pause, step, twirl, step, step.

_"Oh what he said to me 'You are all that I can see,_

_the fairest of them all I do believe... "_

Swing, step, pause, hold, step.

_"'The dimples in your cheeks, as cute as one could be!'_

_He bowed and whispered 'Will you dance with me?'_

Step, step, pause, dip.

Her heart thumped in her chest as he dipped her, looking into those ice chips of eyes. She gave a soft sigh as he lifted her back up, and she hesitantly looked up at him, still dancing.

"What's your name?"

Looking up at him, she couldn't see a hint of emotion on his face.

"My name is Lan, and yours?"

"Nynaeve" She replied in a shaky voice.

"You are a good dancer, Nynaeve" He said softly, warmth coating his voice. Nynaeve smiled.

"You are as well, Lan"

They continued to dance until it was time to swap partners, and she felt slightly crestfallen. She quickly noticed that he didn't dance with anyone else though, instead just going back to the table he had been at ever since she had arrived. She felt slightly warmed that _she _had been the one he had danced with, instead of some other skank that would just dance for his... well, you know. She chuckled, and the man she was dancing with smiled down at her.

* * *

Lan PoV

He watched the festivities go on in the inn, a slight smile playing at his lips as he watched the lass he had danced with. Nynaeve. She was a fine woman, no doubt about it, but something about her reminded him about Moiraine. Maybe it was just the aura of authority that she held, maybe it was the way she carried herself, or the way she shied away from emotion. Whatever it was, he could tell that she was something surely off about her.

He turned his attention back to the musician, who was eyeing Moiraine as she danced with the friendly men from the small town. Lan got up, going to the small bar and getting a light drink. He tossed coins on the the table and downed the alcohol. He rather liked the taste, and ordered the stronger version of it. Soon enough, he was pretty much smashed and the Inn was all but empty. He knew it wasn't smart to get drunk on unknown territory, but this town wasn't one he got a bad feeling from, so why not?

He looked drunkenly around, the few people who had stayed or hadn't gone to bed were scattered about, a few young, a few old. Moiraine was speaking with the Gleeman, and the pretty girl that Lan had danced with was sitting at the corner of the room, seeming to be reading. He stared for a moment, before downing another cup of whatever the hell it was that he had ordered.

Lan got up, eyeing the room before making his way swiftly towards the girl. No one deserved to be alone in a bar. No one.

"Hi" He said, sitting down across from her.

* * *

She looked up from her book, surprised to see Lan right there. "Hello"

There was a long, uncomfortable silence, and she looked down to begin reading again when his voice interrupted her. Again.

"What, no questions?" She raised an eyebrow, and shook her head.

"I prefer not to ask something that I might regret later" She was surprised to see him nodding in assent. As if he understood her reasoning when he was drunk.

"Wise words, girl" She stiffened at the last word.

"Well, I am a Wisdom, if you couldn't tell" Apparently he couldn't, by how he raised his eyebrows.

"Aren't you a bit young to be a Wisdom? He asked. She did her best not to try and slap him. Her hand began to twitch though.

"There is no age to being wise"

"Oh really?"

"Yes"

"What do you do, as a Wisdom?"

"I heal, put my advice in on tough decisions, teach, and make sure people don't get into more trouble than whats worth it"

"If only the world had more people like you"

"Meaning?"

Lan chuckled.

"You have _no _idea how fucked up the world is"

"And wisdom is going to fix it? Don't make me laugh"

Ice blue suddenly was staring directly into coffee brown. "You have no idea how much wisdom could fix them. Could fix us"

She started to lean away, but held fast. There was no way that he would intimidate her. She took a shaky breath, and glowered at Lan. They glared at eachother for the longest while, and the last few people eventually left, including Thom and the lady stranger.

She got up suddenly. "It's late, I must go" She said hotly, leaving with a dark glare at the air in front of her.

* * *

Lan began to get ready to leave, but noticed the leather-bound book she had been reading. In her haste to leave, she must have forgotten it. _I'll give it to her tomorrow._

* * *

_**Well then, that was exciting! Not really... Maybe I'll build more on it, but I don't really know.**_


	2. Chapter 2

The last person that Nynaeve wanted to see the next morning was that lout; Lan. But, like the world she lived in, it just had to put Lan right next to the door, staring with those ice eyes right where the door she walked through was. Her jaw clenched when he started towards her, and Nynaeve jerked to the left, to the nearest exit, and ducked out the door.

Her hands wiped uneasily against her dress, and she gave a tug to her braid. Her breath caught quickly as she felt someone tap her shoulder. She turned, raising an eyebrow.

It was Lan.

"Um... yes?" She asked, hand immidiately going to her braid, and eyes narrowing.

"Yesterday, you forgot your book in your haste to leave" The man handed her her leather-bound book, and she blushed.

"Thank you" She said, and Lan shrugged.

"That's a good book, it would be a waste of time to just forget it"

Nynaeve gave Lan a questioning stare.

"You've read it?"

The man nodded, his angular features catching in the light, and she noticed a few small scars that ran around his neck. Nynaeve looked down, wondering if he thought staring was rude.

"Oh, when Maliki meets Trimai, don't be angered" He said, and turned to leave.

Nynaeve glanced up at Lan, but he was already a few yards away and didn't look like he was coming back.

"Bloody man, probably ruined the best part" She muttered, too low for anyone within a foot to hear. She sighed, flipping to her bookmarked page and beginning to read as she walked down the stone pathway that wound through the town. She soon found Mat next to her, inquiring her about a sore throat.

"Yeah, yeah" She waved a hand. "Lemon tea with honey should work like a charm" She was much more focused on her book than anything at the moment, and looked up for a second to find that Mat had disappeared. She looked around, noticing she had wandered to the edge of the town, and was gazing at the woods that surrounded the town.

Nynaeve wandered into the woods, her soft step barely making a sound as she slid silently through the shadows. She was glad to be trained like a woodsman, she knew that someday it would come in handy.

The wind murmured through the tree's, and Nynaeve saw the perfect place to read. A little area with soft patches of grass and a mossy boulder to rest on. The wonderful music of the wind through the tree's, and the leaves fluttering to the ground made her just... fall in love with the place. She caught sight of a lovely doe walking through the tree's, her head held high and her posture calm. Nynaeve could see a little fawn following the creature, and a twinge settled in her heart. The two beautiful creatures were close to the hunting grounds. She took a step forward, and a twig snapped underfoot. The deer were gone instantly, running gracefully through the underbrush.

She wandered into the clearing, resting her hand on the mossy boulder. The spongy thing made her shiver in delight. She climbed atop it, slinging her legs over the edge and opening her book to read once more.

_"Maliki couldn't believe it, his own mother had betrayed him! _

_"My, my mother? What was her name?" The brute asked, his eyes worried._

_"I am your mother... my name is Trimai" A elder woman stepped forward..."_

Nynaeve read on, Lan's advice ringing through her head as she read further into the story. Bloody man, he did ruin one of the best parts! Her anger flared a bit, but she soon calmed as she was absorbed into the book once more. The sun was beginning to climb high, and she knew that she would need to be back at home by noon if she didn't want a bloody riot to start.

She snapped the book shut, and made her way through the forest, spotting a few hunters on her way, and making sure to do a complete circut around them before darting out into the open. She walked calmly towards home, eyes shining as she neared the inn.

Thom was outside again, his cloak flourishing as she approached.

"Hello Thom" She greeted the old gleeman, smiling.

"Nynaeve" He nodded in greeting, mustache perking as he smiled. "How are you, my fine girl?"

"Very good, today" She replied. "And you?"

Thom shifted, eyes merry as he straightened. "I believe I am as content as a cat in a box"

She chuckled. "Well that is all very well, but it seems that someone is awaiting my presence" She waved lightly in goodbye, approaching Tamlin Al'Thor.

"Ah, Nynaeve" He looked a little flushed, and she could already feel that it was a cold that was coming on. No more, no less.

"I've been feeling a little off lately, could you give me a little something to help?"

Nynaeve rolled her eyes. "You don't need anything more than a little Thyme to prevent the cold. I know, I know" She said, cutting him off when he tried to speak.

"Winter is almost here, yes. But I need to keep my storage up. You can find Thyme growing just East of your barn. It is a fleshy plant with lavender-colored, four-petaled, flowers" She took a breather, watching as Tam walked off. In all honesty, he had wasted time coming to ask her about a little cold. Children she could understand, but a full-grown, wise, man? Psh, please. Something was up, and Nynaeve didn't like it.

She approached the inn, eyes downcasting as she settled in the same corner as before. She would head home sooner or later, but she enjoyed the merry sound of Thom's harp, and the soothing sound of Mat's flute. Funny, about a year ago she would have found those sounds annoying.

She noticed Lan walk in, shadowing the same woman, and idly wondered who the woman was. She yawned, the inn seemed to be running slow today. Huh, that was weird. Normally the place would be bursting with people.


	3. Chapter 3

Although she simply watched from the little corner she sat in, Nynaeve itched to get up and dance again, but she wouldn't. Her hand reached for her braid, and she gave it a few tugs before flipping open the book and reading a little more. She was lightly running her finger over the last few pages when movement above her made her flinch.

"Jumpy, are we?" A friendly voice said, and Nynaeve looked up, greeting Thom with a half-smile.

"Nah, it's just, this is a really good book... I kind of don't want it to end" She replied, the last few pages pinched between her thumb and pointer finger. A few strands of her long hair hung out of her braid, and for one moment, she considered taking the braid out.

_No. _She told herself. Even if she took her hair down, it was always going to be a lost cause. Something told Nynaeve that Lan was somehow... attached to the short young woman he followed around. She sprung up from her seat, looking at Thom with a smile.

"Why aren't you playing? You know no man can compare to you in music" Nynaeve said with a feigned smile. Thom considered her for a moment, his fingers curling over his mustache.

"I'm afraid you looked rather... awkward, sitting in the corner alone... watching one certain guest member" He rose an eyebrow at her, and Nynaeve tried to contain her blush. "Or two, for that matter"

He paused a moment, and Nynaeve sighed.

"The girl, and the man. I know his name, and have met him... but every time I get even a few feet closer to her, she just disappears!" Nynaeve grew frustrated, and found Thom laughing easily, putting his hand on her shoulder.

"You worry too much, girl" He snickered. "Moraine and Lan are simply passing through to ah... well, that is classified" He frowned, and looked at Nynaeve.

* * *

**Because my stupid mind wont let me think, the rest of this will be posted tomorrow... tell me I spelled Moraine right, cause I can't remember. XD**


End file.
